This invention relates generally to wire forming and twisting devices and, more particularly, to devices for forming loops or eyelets in wire. The invention is of particular interest to fishermen who wish to make their own wire leaders, lures or the like.
A fisherman often uses a wire extension at the end of a fishing line so that a fish, upon being caught, will be unable to break or cut the line and escape. The wire extension is called a leader. Attached to the leader may be a lure for attracting fish. Hooks also may be attached to the leader directly. There are commercially available an assortment of leaders and lures, but the preparation of leaders and lures is a highly individual matter for those to whom fishing is an art. Consequently, individuals often prefer to fabricate their own leaders and lures. A variety of devices are known for such purposes.
In fabricating leaders an important step is the formation of eyelets in the wire, normally at one or both ends of the leaders. The eyelets are formed by bending a length of wire into a loop and wrapping a free end portion of the wire about the length of wire in helical twists or coils to define the eyelet. In making a lure, versus a leader, a variety of devices attractive to fish are threaded onto a wire, and eyelets may be formed in the wire to retain the attractive devices on the wire. Eyelets are also useful in providing means whereby a hook may be directly attached to a line or leader. Other devices such as swivels, or the like, also are attached to wire lines or leaders by means of eyelets.
One of the problems with an individual fabricating his own wire leaders, lures, or the like, which include small eyelets, is in the difficulty of manually manipulating the wire during various bending operations. This is particularly true where the wire is of relatively stiff spring wire which is commonly used in ocean fishing. Tools heretofore provided for twisting, wrapping or tying eyelets in wire do not provide sufficient means for holding the wire while the various operations are performed thereon to form eyelets or the like. The wire tends to spring back to its original position and is extremely difficult to manipulate to form a neat, uniform and tightly wrapped construction. There is a definite need for a simple, hand tool to solve these problems.
An object, therefore, of the present invention is to provide a new and improved wire forming and twisting device and particularly to provide a device for forming loops and/or eyelets in wire.
The invention is disclosed herein in two different but somewhat similar embodiments. Both embodiments are designed for forming loops or eyelets in wire. Both embodiments include a novel elongated body construction which includes an outer sleeve and an inner core rotatable relative to each other but secured together as a self-contained unit to permit twisting or wrapping of the wire to hold and encapsulate a length of wire while the various twists or wraps are being performed therein. The outer sleeve and inner core have elongated grooves extending axially of the body. The grooves are alignable for positioning the length of wire into the groove in the inner core. The length of wire is completely encapsulated in the groove of the inner core by the outer sleeve in response to relative rotation thereof to misalign the grooves.
In one embodiment of the invention, means is provided at one end of the elongated two-part body for forming a closed loop in a length of wire held by the body, with a free end portion of the wire extending away from the closed loop. Means is provided on the opposite end of the two-part body for tightly wrapping the free end portion of the wire about the length of wire inwardly of the closed loop in response to relative rotation between the closed loop and the body while the length of wire is completely encapsulated between the outer sleeve and inner core of the body, to completely form an eyelet. After the eyelet is completely formed, the outer sleeve and inner core of the body can be rotated back to their original positions of alignment of their respective grooves and the length of wire, with the eyelet formed therein, can be removed from the body.
In particular, the means for forming the closed loop comprises a pair of spaced pins fixed to and protruding axially outwardly from the one end of the two-part body. One pin provides an abutment stop for the wire and the other pin provides a rounded surface about which the wire is bent to form the closed loop. A headed pin protrudes axially outwardly of the opposite end of the two-part body and about which the free end portion of the wire is rotated to tightly wrap the free end portion about the length of wire inwardly of the closed loop to completely form the eyelet. As disclosed herein, the pair of pins at one end of the body for forming the closed loop, and the headed pin at the opposite end of the body for forming the tight wraps, all are formed on and protrude axially outwardly of the inner core, with the outer sleeve encircling the inner core between the opposite ends thereof.
In the second embodiment of the invention, the two-part body has a tapered nose cone protruding axially from one end of the body. The nose cone has diametrically disposed axial slots on the exterior thereof for receiving portions of a length of wire after the wire is formed into a loop. The wire portions are encapsulated and held within cooperating elongated groove means between the outer sleeve and inner core of the body. The slotted nose cone provides means for twisting the wire helically away from the loop in response to relative rotation between the loop and the body. Second means, in the form of a peripheral groove about the body at the base of the nose cone, tightly wraps a free end portion of the wire about the length of wire inwardly of the innermost twist to completely form an eyelet including the twisted wire portion.
In both embodiments, stop limit means is provided operatively associated between the outer sleeve and inner core of the body to define the aligned positions of the elongated grooves in the sleeve and core, as well as to define a particular misaligned position of the grooves.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.